Amputee
by internet cat
Summary: A little look into Tahno's life after his bending is taken away; MakoxKorra; Oneshot


**Yeah so it's like 1 in the morning and I'm tired don't judge me for this. But oh my Thor, Tahno feels, I love him. Hope there's more of him in the second season.**

**Oh and one-shot. Rate and review, ta-ta**

Republic City was in a chaos. Benders faced off with non-benders. Fighter planes, invented by the now-infamous Hiroshi Sato, flew overhead in torrents. People ran through the streets, either trying to escape with their lives or purposely spreading the pandemonium like wildfire.

Amidst everything, Tahno peeked out from his estate like a timid mouse, all pride stripped away with his water bending abilities. Another boom rattled his mansion. He gave a startled grunt as his nose bumped against the windowpane. He sighed and flipped his limp curls away from his eyes before he turned from the sight of his beloved city crumbling; the knowledge that he could do nothing to help, even if he had the audacity to, made his insides burn with hatred and defeat. He clutched his stomach, the pain becoming almost physical.

He plopped down on the couch, rubbing his nose, which he suspected was starting to bruise. Another brain-rattling explosion shook the city, sending a few flower-filled vases in the kitchen hurtling to the ground.

He wished they would stop coming: the get well cards, the presents, the flowers that wilted within a day and sat sad and lonely on the counter. They only reminded Tahno of his situation, which he was trying desperately to forget. Yet he didn't have the heart to throw out the gifts, so they stayed.

He would never bend again. He'd tried every healer in and around the city, from the big shot doctors to the little shah men in their shacks on some obscure island. No one could fix what Amon had done to him.

All of his identity, his life, the _one thing _that made him Tahno, was gone. He was no longer a Wolfbat, a bender. He felt an empty space where his powers once were, like an amputee. His fists clenched, unclenched.

"This is what I get for being a jerk, huh?" Tanho mumbled to himself. Something stirred behind him.

"Master Tahno? Would you like to move to a safer location?"

Tahno furrowed his eyebrows, his old stubbornness coming back to him for a few precious seconds. He turned to face the handyman of the house.

"Look, Inco, I'm fine here. I've already lost everything, so I honestly don't care." He ruffled his already tousled hair. "You can leave after dispose of all those…gifts. They're driving me insane." Inco nodded and turned to leave.

"Hey, Inco?" Inco paused at the archway to the next room.

"Get home safe, okay?" Inco cracked a smile.

"Okay, boss."

Tahno sat there for at least half an hour, staring at the blank wall in front of him and listening to the sounds of Inco rummaging around in the kitchen. Then the door slammed and locked, and he was alone with himself and all his regrets. He didn't know what else to do, so he lay his head down on the arm of the loveseat and closed his eyes, drifting between twisted dreams and the shakiness of the real world. He knew not how long he lay there, lonely and tired, physically and emotionally.

When he finally awoke, it was from absence of sound and movement. A strange stillness settled over the living room; as he came to his senses and rubbed the sleep from his eyes, he realized it was because the calamity outside had calmed down to nothing. He sat up and stretched while eyeing the slanted light coming from the windows warily, just waiting for another catastrophe to occur out of nowhere. Tahno stalked over and peered outside. The only movement was a paper rustling in the wind. As he focused on it, he realized it was an Equalist rally poster, Amon's vile face plastered in the middle. Tahno reached up to rub his temples – even the sight of the man who took everything from him made his head pound. For lack of anything else to do, as usual, he ambled towards the fridge and rooted around inside for something to eat. On the way to the table, he took a longer look outside and judged that it was around seven in the afternoon, meaning he had slept for more than a day. He shrugged. "What else am I going to do with my life?" he muttered to his box of cornflakes.

Mid-way through his bowl of cereal, he heard the door creak open. The hairs on the nape of his neck stood straight up. Knowing it would be a bad idea to call out to the stranger, whether it be a burglar, or even worse, an Equalist, Tahno silently stood up and creeped over to look around the corner. He didn't see anything – only the slightly ajar door suggested anything was off. Just as he was about to dismiss it as the wind (even though, somewhere in the back of his mind, he knew Inco had locked the door), a pair of hands wrapped around his shoulders and smacked tight over his mouth, another snaking around his torso and holding back his arms. He struggled a bit before going limp. He didn't have a chance against anyone, so why even try? His captor then, strangely enough, chuckled. He started at the out of place sound.

"What, you're giving up that easy?" a masculine voice purred. Tahno recognized it from somewhere, but he couldn't put a finger on it. He was suddenly released from his bonds. He took the advantage to whip around.

"Wait, what? Mako?" Tahno gaped. Mako just grinned as Korra popped out from behind Tanho. She walked over to stand next to Mako, who was leaning on a pillar a couple feet away.

"And Korra!" she spouted with a toothy smile. She put her arm around Mako's waist, informing Tahno in one simple movement that they were now together.

"What are you guys doing here?" Korra shifted her eyes around slyly.

"Well, I know it's a delicate subject, but, y'know how you got your bending taken away?" Tahno flinched and awkwardly put his hands behind his back. She frowned a bit and traced random shapes on Mako's arm.

"How could I forget, exactly?" Korra made a hurt face and scratched the back of her neck uncomfortably.

"Okay…well…that was phrased badly, but…" she looked at Mako for encouragement. He nodded. "Guess what?" She danced away from Mako and stood in front of Tahno. "I can give it back!" Tahno snorted and slapped his knee.

"That's funny. Really funny, Ahh-vatar." His face sobered. "But I'm not in the mood. Plus, I thought we were friends now, at least acquaintances. It's unlike friends to tease each other about such touchy subjects, or so I thought." Korra made a strangled sound, searching for words. He turned around to face the wall and lightly placed his hand against a picture of the Wombats. "If you're done antagonizing me, I'd like you to leave now." Mako spoke for Korra.

"Look. I know you've been through a lot and you probably don't trust people anymore but…she's serious about this. She can fix you; give you back everything that makes you, you. You can go back to being a White Falls Wombat; a bender. _Yourself_." Tahno closed his eyes and pressed the palms of his hands against them, thinking hard for a moment. He turned around slowly.

"You're serious?"

"Yes!" the couple proclaimed at the same time.

A thousand visions of victory swarmed through his mind. He and his team could rise through the ranks again, now that the Pro-Bending matches would be back in business.

But the absence of his bending had changed him. He knew then that he would never feel comfortable bending in front of a big crowd again; not after his powers had been taken away in the same situation. He asked first question that surfaced in his jumbled mind.

"What if I don't want to bend again?" He shivered slightly as he turned to face Mako and Korra once again. They both had slightly shocked expressions on their faces.

"Or, at least, not compete again. I don't want to bend for competition. I want to use my bending for good. I want to help the city, not be one of the controlling power-sick benders that Amon claimed us all to be."

Korra and Mako stared blankly for a moment before nodding.

"I've realized that my bending did not make me who I am. I am Tahno, with or without my abilities. I am grateful for these few weeks, because I have discovered who I really am." Tahno took a long sigh. "And I've come to realize I like the real Tahno more than the one I've been pretending to be for a very long time."

"I understand what you're saying," Korra said slowly. "But that doesn't mean you shouldn't get your bending back…I know how it feels to have it taken away." Mako grabbed Korra around the shoulder and rubbed her arm reassuringly. "It…it isn't fun." Tahno closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

"Yeah, I guess it's not." He stepped forward.

"Okay…I'm ready." Korra smiled gently.

"Kneel, please." Tahno followed her directions. She stepped forward and placed her fingertips on his forehead. His mind raced once again. Happiness was a few short moments away. A ghost of a smile settled on his face. Korra's eyes glowed bright blue with the power of the Avatar and Tahno was whole again.

He flexed his fingers and felt all the water in pipes around him ripple at his will. He pulled and it all burst through the walls, drenching the three benders. Tahno grinned, tossing the water around to fly at Korra. At the last second, she bended it back at him, splashing him in the face and laughing playfully.

"Is that all you've got?" she screeched in delight.

The battle had begun.

Mako, Korra, and Tahno spent the next few hours in the flooded kitchen of Tahno's estates, Korra and Tahno jousting to see who could cover the other in the most water, Mako pouting in the corner; his attempts at fire bending were constantly doused by the two other benders. When their clothes were though roughly ruined (except Mako's beloved scarf, of course) and every inch of their skin was wrinkled like a prune, they called it quits, Mako stacking things in the corner of the room to dry and the two water benders disposing of the water best they could. After everything was settled, they found themselves in Tahno's front room with the door hanging open and a cool breeze sending chills through their bones. Korra clung lightly to Mako's arm and Tahno stood across from them, trying to style his hair into its particular curls for what seemed like the first time in years.

"It's been nice…well, ruining your house with you," Mako said with a chuckle. Tahno glanced back and laughed at his wrecked kitchen, which was already starting to smell like mildew.

"Ah, never the mind. I'm just…glad to be back." He absentmindedly spun a few drops of water around his fingertips.

"I'm glad you're back too." Korra grinned. Despite the 'one raised eyebrow' look from Mako, Tahno leaned forward and laid a soft peck on her cheek.

"Thank you, Ah-vatar."


End file.
